Deadly road accident
THE horrible accident on the Lahore-Islamabad motorway early Sunday morning in which at least 18 bus passengers were killed is yet another depressing reminder of how dangerous our highways have become. So badly were they burned that DNA tests had to be carried out on the dead to establish their identity. Twenty others sustained serious burn injuries. The Islamabad-bound bus had caught fire after it crashed into a small pick-up truck parked on the shoulder of the motorway near the Pindi-Bhattian interchange. The inferno, which engulfed the ill-fated bus, was allegedly ignited by smuggled Iranian oil the pick-up van was transporting in canisters. Such deadly accidents are not uncommon on Pakistan’s highways and roads. In recent years, the number of fatalities in road accidents has gone up dramatically. Latest PBS data shows that 5,608 people lost their lives in road accidents across Pakistan in 2021. Considering that many accidents aren’t reported at all these numbers appear on the lower side, especially when compared to the WHO’s estimate of more than 28,000 accident deaths the previous year. Even the PBS numbers are scary as these indicate a totally preventable epidemic getting out of hand. Such accidents need not happen if stringent safety standards for all kinds of vehicles, especially passenger buses and cargo trucks, are implemented. That would mean heavy fines for speeding and other traffic violations and faulty vehicles. On many occasions, untrained and fatigued drivers have been responsible for fatal accidents.
However, no matter how many lives are lost, road accidents are not dealt with as a ‘crime’ that needs to be investigated to fix responsibility and punish the violators. Like many other countries, Pakistan can also minimise road accidents by implementing vehicle safety standards and punishing traffic violators, besides ensuring that road conditions are safe. For that, the police will have to start taking all accidents, whether fatal or otherwise, seriously so that road users learn to apply caution.
Published in Dawn, August 22nd, 2023
Arrests & abductions
THE season of arrests based on dubious charges and abductions of citizens from their homes in Pakistan is clearly in full swing. The latest to be hauled up by the dragnet of the deep state are human rights lawyer Imaan Mazari-Hazir and Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement member and former lawmaker Ali Wazir. Both individuals were booked in two cases after a PTM rally in the outskirts of Islamabad on Friday, where the government claims ‘anti-state’ speeches were made. The way in which Ms Mazari was detained is particularly deplorable, as according to her, the law enforcers stormed her residence in the early hours of Sunday. Meanwhile, this is not the first time Mr Wazir has been detained. Ms Mazari’s counsel says her client only called for the “accountability of institutions” for which she was being labelled a “terrorist”, while Mr Wazir also insists he said “nothing wrong”. Serious charges have been filed against them, including those that come under sedition and terrorism. Meanwhile, PTI leaders Shah Mahmood Qureshi and Asad Umar were also picked up in connection with the cipher probe, though Mr Umar was later released.
The post-May 9 events have sent a chill across the country, with people being picked up on the flimsiest of charges. While incitement to violence cannot be condoned, the state tends to treat even lawful criticism — protected under the right to free speech — as a sign of rebellion, and cracks down with full force. All this was also happening under the PTI and PDM governments. Now the same practice seems to be continuing during the caretaker set-up. While the law and information ministers on Sunday took pains to counter the president’s recent remarks, not a word has been uttered about these arrests or abductions, and no action taken. In fact, the PTM rally was held for the discovery/release of their ‘missing’ members, which indicates that many more have been taken into custody and no one seems to know of their whereabouts. Are the caretakers simply a façade for powerful unelected forces who are determined to wipe out all dissenting voices and differing opinions, in essence destroying whatever exists of the democratic process, and replacing it with a much darker system? If the caretakers cannot put a halt to such arbitrary arrests, how will they ensure free and fair elections?
Published in Dawn, August 22nd, 2023
‘No’ means ‘yes’
WITH the caretakers settling in, one would have expected that the fever that has lately wracked Pakistani politics would finally start receding. Instead, it appears that we may be in for a fresh bout of febrile uncertainty, thanks to continuing power struggles at the highest levels of the state.
The president on Sunday caused a major scandal when he posted on X (formerly Twitter) that he had never assented to two controversial bills seeking to amend the Army Act and the Official Secrets Act. Just a day earlier, these amendments had been [announced][2] as having been enacted into law.
The president’s startling disclosure triggered a furore, with analysts and commentators presenting vastly different views on its implications. As the interim government tried to deflect blame, the country faced international ridicule over the farcical manner in which it has been run as of late.
It is clear that something had been amiss at the presidency. This publication was repeatedly stonewalled by the Aiwan-i-Sadr in recent days whenever it attempted to get confirmation on which laws among the dozens passed by the 15th National Assembly in its last days had actually been given President Arif Alvi’s assent. It is unclear who was seeking to withhold this information from the public; the president’s own statement appears to suggest that he, too, was being kept in the dark.
However, it has also greatly confused many why President Alvi thought it necessary to apologise for the two laws as if their implementation was inevitable. Had he accepted them to be fait accompli? Why? Several legal experts have argued that the two bills can no longer be deemed to have been enacted, considering the president never gave them his assent. Why, then, did Mr Alvi take such an ambiguous position on the matter through his post?
There must be an independent inquiry into this matter. If any person or persons sought to ensure that these two bills were enacted regardless of what the president actually thought about them, they must be found and prosecuted. The latest is that the President’s Secretariat has called for his secretary to be replaced. This is not enough. All responsible must face exemplary punishment for subverting the legislative process. If President Alvi truly believes he was deceived, he has a responsibility to restore the sanctity of his office.
Meanwhile, the legal status of the two laws continues to be debated. While the caretaker government and several PML-N leaders have rushed to defend their enactment, the ongoing controversy boils down to the question of how the Constitution is to be correctly interpreted on the matter. While this question is resolved, the two laws, in their amended form, must not be enforced till the judiciary has had the final say.
Published in Dawn, August 22nd, 2023